A sinner’s conscience will drive him into either guilt, resulting in repentance, or to death itself because of a refusal to repent. It is no act of kindness to try to make him feel better; the more guilt he feels, the more likely he is to turn to God and repent. If we interfere with the natural consequences of his act, we may make it easier for him to continue in his sin.
…That was the last paragraph from the previous post. I’ve gotten some great comments on this, and I want to continue. This past post really speaks about a situation I’ve encountered about Spiritual Pride causing disorder in the church (You can read Sometimes the Truth Hurts).
“A sinner’s conscience will drive him into either guilt, resulting in repentance, or to death itself because of a refusal to repent.” This is exactly what Paul meant in 2 Corinthians 5 when he instructed the Corinthian church to “hand the man over to Satan”… meaning to exclude him from the fellowship of believers. Without the spiritual support from Christians, this man would be left alone with his sin and Satan, or perhaps this would drive him to repentance. And I NEED TO SAY THIS: Just as parents punish children to correct and restore, the church’s role should be to help, not hurt offenders, motivating them to repent of their sins. ***It never ceases to amaze me… that when even written thousands of years apart from each other, the New Testament always reinforces the truth written in the Old Testament!
A friend of mine brought this to my attention. Actually, it was the perfect time, because one of the books I’m reading says, “The more intimate our relationship is with God and His Word, the more our eyes are open to identify the blessings He sends.” Let’s look at Proverbs 28: 13 again…
“He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”
Prosperity is associated with MERCY! Not money or any material thing, but MERCY! We are prosperous when MERCY is given to us! The Bible is jammed packed with references of God’s tender mercies. We are so undeserving of God’s mercy, but “You in Your mercy have led forth the people whom You have redeemed; You have guided them in Your strength to Your holy habitation.” Exodus 15: 13
Are your eyes open to see how great that verse in Proverbs is?
“He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the Lord will be prospered.” (NKJV)
“He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, but whoever walks wisely will be delivered.” (NKJV) Proverbs 28: 25-26
“Greed causes fighting; trusting the Lord leads to prosperity (or MERCY).” (NLT)
“Those who trust their own insight are foolish, but anyone who walks in wisdom is safe.” (NLT) Proverbs 28: 25-26
Trust in self (pride) is a source of strife, hatred, and war. We live in a society where the rugged individualist is the hero. People admire bold, self-directed men and women who know what they want and know what they’ll fight for… the self-reliant people. I used to be a self-reliant person, who refused any sort of help when I first got this disease. I wanted to do everything on my own, and viewed asking for help as a sign of weakness. What a contrast to God’s way! There is not anyone who can predict future events and consequences of his or her choices with certainty. And so the totally self-reliant person is doomed to failure. The wise person will be the one who depends on God.
